On October 19, 2012, the National Association of Manufacturers and the US Chamber of Commerce filed a petition with the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit requesting that the court review both the SEC's final conflict minerals rules and Section 1502 of the Dodd-Frank Act, the statutory provision under which the rules were adopted. The conflict minerals rules require reporting companies to make specialized disclosure and conduct related diligence concerning specified minerals and their derivative metals contained in the companies' products. The minerals and metals covered by the rule, including, among others, gold, tin, tantalum and tungsten, are included in many common products. Plaintiffs have requested that the court modify or set aside the rules in whole or in part.

To learn more about the final conflict minerals rules, see Practice Note, Conflict Minerals Diligence.